ESGR helps Service members, employers, and members of the military chain of command understand each other’s rights and responsibilities.
Employers regularly contact ESGR seeking information regarding an employee’s military service requirement. Below are three concerns often expressed by employers. ESGR coordinates with the Military Departments and Reserve Components in an effort to address these common employer questions.
For a workplace issue, conflict or question call the Customer Service Center to speak with a representative at 800-336-4590, Option 1, or email OSD.USERRA@mail.mil.
Today’s military service requirements often require Reserve Component members to serve more than the traditional one weekend a month and two weeks a year. When the absences of an employee start to have a negative effect on the employer, Department of Defense Instruction 1205.12 permits the employer to express their concerns over the timing, frequency and duration of the uniformed service to an appropriate military authority. This instruction directs the Reserve Component representative to consider written requests from an employer to adjust the Service member's absences from civilian employment, unless prevented by military necessity, or it is impossible or unreasonable to do so under the circumstances. While it is not always possible to accommodate an employer's request to adjust periods of uniformed service, this type of communication may be helpful in mitigating some service-related employment conflicts.
U.S. Army: Army Reserve US Army USERRA policy memorandum Contact Information: Office of the Chief of Army Reserve, Private Public Partnership Office 6075 Goethals Road, Building 1908 Fort Belvoir, VA 22060 Email address: usarmy.usarc.ocar.mbx.p3@mail.mil Phone: 703-806-7597
U.S. Army: Army National Guard US Army USERRA policy memorandum Contact Information: Army National Guard G1 (ARNG-HRH) ATTN: AGR Policy Branch 111 S. George Mason Drive Arlington, VA 22204-1382 Email address: ng.ncr.ngb-arng.mbx.us-userra@army.mil Phone: 703-604-8496 U.S. Air Force: Air National GuardUS Air Force USERRA policy memorandum Contact Information: NGB/A1PS 3500 Fetchet Avenue Joint Base Andrews, MD 20762-5157 Email address: NGB.A1.A1PS.Org@us.af.mil Phone: 240-612-7931
U.S. Air Force: Air Force ReserveUS Air Force USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:HQ AF/REP1050 Air Force PentagonWashington, DC 22202Email address: usaf.pentagon.af-re-workflow@mail.milPhone: 703-614-0728
U.S. Navy: Navy Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve US Navy and US Marine Corps USERRA policy memorandum Contact Information: Department of the Navy ASN (M&RA) 1000 Navy Pentagon Washington, DC 20350-1000 U.S. Coast Guard: Coast Guard Reserve US Coast Guard USERRA policy memorandum Contact Information: Coast Guard Personnel Service Center (CG-PSC-RPM) 2703 Martin Luther King Jr Avenue, Stop 7200 Washington, DC 20593-1000 Email address: arl-pf-cgpsc-rpm-1-status@uscg.mil
Under USERRA, Service members have reemployment rights with any single employer for up to 5-cumulative years. However, USERRA provides certain exceptions to this 5-year service limit, including any period of service certified as exempt by the Service Secretary concerned. Many employers and Service members have questions about whether a period of service is considered exempt, or if it counts against the 5-year service limit. The following resources may help:
38 USC 4312: Reemployment rights of persons who serve in the uniformed services. Section 4312(c) identifies the authorities and types of service that do not count against the 5-year limit.
The Secretaries of the Air Force, Navy, Army and Commandant of the Coast Guard have signed USERRA policy memorandums outlining which types of service are exempt from (not counted against) the 5-year cumulative limit, and what office can assist in determining if a period of service is exempted from the 5-year limit. The contact information for these offices and links to the service-specific policy memorandums are listed below.
Warning: Please use encryption if sending files with Personally Identifiable Information (PII). You may use sites such as DoD's SAFE (Secure Access File Exchange) to safely transmit files with PII. When using SAFE, a request must originate from a DoD user if you access the site using a non-DoD account. See the following for instructions: https://safe.apps.mil/
U.S. Army: Army ReserveUS Army USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:Office of the Chief of Army Reserve, Private Public Partnership Office6075 Goethals Road, Building 1908Fort Belvoir, VA 22060Email address: usarmy.usarc.ocar.mbx.p3@mail.milPhone: 703-806-7597
U.S. Army: Army National GuardUS Army USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:Army National Guard G1 (ARNG-HRH)ATTN: AGR Policy Branch111 S. George Mason DriveArlington, VA 22204-1382Email address: ng.ncr.ngb-arng.mbx.us-userra@army.milPhone: 703-604-8496U.S. Air Force: Air National GuardUS Air Force USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:NGB/A1PS3500 Fetchet AvenueJoint Base Andrews, MD 20762-5157Email address: NGB.A1.A1PS.Org@us.af.milPhone: 240-612-7931
U.S. Navy: Navy Reserve and Marine Corps ReserveUS Navy and US Marine Corps USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:Department of the NavyASN (M&RA)1000 Navy PentagonWashington, DC 20350-1000U.S. Coast Guard: Coast Guard ReserveUS Coast Guard USERRA policy memorandumContact Information:Coast Guard Personnel Service Center (CG-PSC-RPM)2703 Martin Luther King Jr Avenue, Stop 7200Washington, DC 20593-1000Email address: arl-pf-cgpsc-rpm-1-status@uscg.mil
Under USERRA, Service members are not required to provide documentation to prove an absence was due to uniformed service, unless that service is more than 30 days and the documentation is requested by the employer. However, per Department of Defense Instruction 1205.12, the Military Departments are required to verify periods of uniformed service upon an employer's request, regardless of duration of the service-related absence. Employers may reach out to the employee's military chain of command to request this verification.
The type of information about a Service member's uniformed service that can be released to third parties is outlined in DoD 5400.11-R, Department of Defense Privacy Program, May 14, 2007. In section C4.2.2.5.2.. the following are described as routine use disclosures specific to military members (see DoD 5400.11-R for complete list):
C4.2.2.5.2.1.1. Full name.
C4.2.2.5.2.1.5. Past duty assignments.
C4.2.2.5.2.1.6. Present duty assignments.
C4.2.2.5.2.1.7. Future assignments that are officially established.
C4.2.2.5.2.1.13. Duty status at any given time.
To review DoD 5400.11-R, Department of Defense Privacy Program, click here.
The Secretaries of the Air Force, Navy, Army and Commandant of the Coast Guard contact information for these offices and links to the service-specific policy memorandums are listed below.
Warning: Please use encryption if sending files with Personally Identifiable Information (PII). You may use sites such as DoD's SAFE (Secure Access File Exchange) to safely transmit files with PII. When using SAFE, a request must originate from a DoD user if you access the site using a non-DoD account. See the following for instructions: https://safe.apps.mil/about.php